Electrical testing device



C. L. BEGAS.

ELECTRICAL TESTING DEVICE.

APPucmoN HLED JUNE 8.1918'.

PantedSept. 7, 1920.

UNITED STATES CARL LOUIS BEGAS, 0F

vELEG'IRICAL TESTING DEVICE.

.r ffii Application led .Tune 8,

To all whom t may concern.' I

Be it known that I, CARL Louis Beans, a citizen of vthe United States, residing in Brooklyn, in the county ot Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electrical Testing Devices, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to electrical testing devices, oi.' a type suitable for condition of incandescent bulbs as well as electric horns, bells, etc., quickly, easily and with a minimum of apparatus.

More particularly stated, I seek to produce an electrical device having generally the form of a board provided with electrical connections and so constructed and adapted as to facilitate the testing ofl individual. bulbs or the like, my device being particularly suitable ior use in stores, salesrooms, garages and the like.

eference is made to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, and in which like reference characters indicate like parts in the diiierent figures.

Figure 1 is a front elevation of my improved electrical testing device.

F ig. 2 is a rear View of the device, and is partly in elevation and partly diagrammatic, this view showing the batteryand its' connections.

A board is shown at 13, and is provided with corner holes 14'for receiving screws to hold the board upon a wall or upon a back slab, as desired. The board 13 is further provided with a pair of small holes 15 through which extend cords 16, 17, carrying terminal clips 1 8, 19, adapted tor engagement with the binding posts of an electric horn, an electric bell or the like, to be tested. The'cord 16 is connected with a strip 2O oi" sheet metal, the latter being secured to a post 21, upon which a switch arm 22 is mounted to swing or turn. The switch arm 22 carries a handle 23 whereby the operator actuates it by hand. Y

Adjacent the switch arm 22 are a number of contact buttons 24, 25, 26, 27, each so positioned that the switch arm'can by a simple movement be brought' into engagement with it.

kThe board 13 is further provided with a number of holes 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, arrangedpreferably in the form of a semicircle, as shown. Each of these holes except the onenumbered 28 is provided with Specification of Letters Patent.

determining the BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

Patented Sept. '7, 1920. 1918. sel-iai No. 238,884.

extending portions or slots 36a. The slots just` mentioned are to adapt the holes to receive bulbs of the type in which there are a pair ot contact terminals extending laterally outward, like iins. The hole 28 is of smaller diameter than the other holes, and is used for testing bulbs ot iash lamps. Such bulbs are relatively small. The hole 28 is not provided' with slots.

he various holes numbered 28 to 36 inclusive are conveniently designated as lamp holes. They are severally designated by appropriate legends which appear in F ig. l. ie letters It L, adjacent the hole 28, indicate Vthat this hole is for flash lamps; 3 D, adjacent the hole 29, means that 'this hole is for testing 3-volt bulbs, of the socalled double7 type; 3 S, adjacent the hole 39, means that this hole is associated with singie bulbs of three volts ;V similarly, the various other legends 6 D, 6 S, 9 D, 9 S, 12 D and 1 2. S mean, respectively, six volts double, six volts single, nine volts double nine volts single, twelve volts double and twelve volts single7 The legends 3, 6, 9, 12, associated with the contact buttons 24, 25, 26 and 27 refer to voltages associated with these buttons.

Mounted upon the board 13 and having the proximate iorm of a semicircle is a strip 37 oi" metal, serving as a distributing strip. Secured to it is a strip 38 of springY metal, serving as contact strip, and tor this purpose'bent into the hole 36 and extending entirely through the same. Another strip 39, of spring sheet metal, extends diametrically 4across this hole 36. Two strips 40, 41,.ot

spring sheet metal, extend across the hole 35, and are disposed parallel to each other and spaced eduidistant from the axis oi: the hole. The strip 41 is connected with the strip 37, the strip 39-being secured to the strip 40. The system thusY started is continued with reference to the other holes numbered 28 to inclusive. Associated with the hole 34 are two strips 42 and 43, the strip 42 extending' across the hole, in the same manner that the strip 39 extends across the hole 36, and the strip 43 extending through the hole 34, just as the strip 38 extends through the hole 36. The strip 42 is secured to a strip 44, and this strip and another strip numbered 45 extend across the hole The strips 46, 47, 48 and 49 are arranged about the holes 32 and 31. in the same manner that the strips 42, 43, 44 and which will thereupon be through the different holes .employed instead, it desired.

are disposed about the holes and 34. Similarly, strips 50, 51, 52 and 5,3 are arranged relatively to rlhe strip 52 is connected to a strip 55, which extends across the hole 28, and a strip 54, connected to the distributing strip 37, eX- tendsY through the hole 2S.

The various strips extending across or are so disposed that the insertion of a lamp into anyone oi the holes will bring the Contact members or" the bulb into. engagement withV the strips, bent or distorted Vslightly in order to insure good contact.

.The strip 52 is connected with a binding post 56, which' extends through the board andy carries the contact button 24. Similarly, the strips 18, 44C an'd 40 are connected severally with binding posts 57, jacent the binding post 59 is another binding post 60, usedin connecting certain wires, as hereinafter described. Each binding post 56, 57, 58, 59 and 60 is provided with a revoluble nut 61, ot the usual or any desiredV binding form. wire 62 extends from the post GO to the distributing strip 37, and from the binding post 60 a vwire 63 leads to a battery cell 64. vAlong with this battery cell are others, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70 and 71. These cells collectively make up the battery I use. Battery connectors are shown at 72, 73, 74;, 75, 76, 77 and 78. I iind that dry cells are in every way suitable for my purpose,` but cells of any other kind may be From'the cell 71 a wire 79 leads to the binding post 59,-and from the cell 65 another wire S0 leads to the binding'pest 56, From the cell 67 a wire 81 leads to the binding post 57. A wire 82 leads from the cell 69 to the binding post 5S.

Thus in effect the battery is subdivided,

' different groups oi cells, representing different voltages, being apportioned oil and associated with various groups oi contact mechanism used for testing. The connections are so arranged that a lamp bulb f kmounted in any one of the lamp holes is subjected to voltage indicated approximately by the legends adjacent the hole. The connections associated with the switch arm 22 are so arranged that whenever the switch arm is moved into engagement with any one ot the contact buttons 24k, 25, 26 or 27, the difference of potential between the terminal clipslS, 19 is indicated approximately by the legend immediately adjacent the particular contact button upon which the switch arm for the moment is resting.- Hence if the'terminal clips 18, 19 havebeen previously' connected to an instrument to be tested, suchv as an electricrhorn or bell, the

operator can subject the instrument to any desired voltage indicated by the legends associated with the contact buttons.

the holes' 29 and 30j for malringtests of various `a board provided with holes n nected together,

The operation of my device is as follows: The parts being assembled and connected as above described, the operator uses the device kinds Jfrom time to time. Suppose he wishes to determine what voltage is suitable for a Vparticular lamp bulb; li it is a single-contact bulb, he tries it iirst in the hole 80. li the lamp now glows brightly, he knows Yfrom the legend 3 that the voltage suitable for the lamp is 3. It, however, the bulb does not Vglow brightly, he moves it tothe hole 32.

if it here glows properly, the voltage is oi: course 6. lf the'glow is not bright the operator moves the bulb to the hole 32 and another reading is made, the voltage being 9 ii there is a proper glow. It there is not, the bulb is tried in the hole 36, 'for l2 volts.

Similarly iii the bulb. is provided with double contact members it is tested in one, two or more oi the holes 29, 31, '33 and S?, the voltage being indicated by the legends 3, Y6, 9 and 12.

It the bulb is a small one, of the kind used for flash lights, it is placed in the hole 28, and its condition determined by the resulting glow, if any, If there'be no glow this is an indicationthat the bulb is out of order.

It the cap city of the bulb in volts is already known, and the operator wishes merely to test the condition of the bulb, he inserts it in the appropriate hole and notes the resulting. glow, if any.

In order to test an electric Vhorn or. bell, or any similar instrument, in order to ascertain the voltage suitable for it, or to ascertain its condition, thel operator connects the terminal clips 18, 19 with it, and moves the switch arm 22 as above described, and. by noting the sound given oil:1 by the instrument and observing the legend associated with thekposition of the switch arm, the test is complete.

I do not limit myself tothe precise mechanism shown, the scope of my invention being commensurate with my claims.V

I claim- Y 1. An electrical testing device, comprising for receiving lamp bulbs to be tested, contact strips mounted upon said board for engaging contact members carried by said lamp bulbs, a battery madeup of a plurality of cells conand conductors extending from said contact strips to different cells of said battery.

2. An electrical testing device, comprising a board provided with lamp vholes and'with contact strips associated with said lamp holes','a battery made up oi separate battery cells connectedtogether, and a number of conductors extending from different cells of said battery to different.contact strips associated with diiferentholes, in order to virlli tually subdivide said battery relatively to Y said holes.

3. An electrical testing device, comprising a board 1provided with a number of lamp holes having contact mechanism for single contact lamps and With a number or lamp holes having contact 1 echanism for double Contact lamps, a battery made up of a number ot cells connected together, contact strips for said holes, and connections from said Contact strips to different cells of said battery, said connections being so distributed as to virtually subdivide said battery among said lamp holes,

:in electrical testing device, comprising a board provided With a number of lamp holes and with contact strips leading to said lamp holes and arranged in pairs, one pair to each lamp hole, a battery made up of a number of cells connected together, connections from diiterent pairs of said contact strips to different parts of said battery, for the purpose of virtually subdividing said battery, a hand switch 'mounted upon said board and provided With a plurality of contact buttons, a pair or" conductors connected with said switch and adapted for connection with an instrument to be tested, so that said instrument may be energized by aid of any one of said contact Vbuttons chosen at the will of the operator, and a number of separate conductors each extending from one of said contact buttons to some part ot said battery, in order to virtually subdivide the energy of the battery among said contact buttons. Y

5. In an electrical testing device the combination of a board provided with lamp holes and with a hand switch, conductors connected to said switch for energizing therefrom an instrument to be tested, a battery made up of cells connected together, connections from said lamp holes to said battery, said connections being so distributed as to subdivide the strength of said battery among said lamp holes, and a number' of other connections from different parts of said battery to different parts of said switch, in order to enable said switch to control, in` dependently of each other, different portions of said battery.

CARL LOUIS BEGAS. 

